Employment in the euro area increased by 1.5% while employment in the EU28 rose by 1.4% in the second quarter of 2018 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, according to seasonally-adjusted data from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. Malta recorded the highest growth rate at 5.5% when compared to the previous year.

Eurostat estimates that, in the second quarter of 2018, 238.9 million men and women were employed in the EU28, of which 158 million were in the euro area. These are the highest levels ever recorded in both areas.

After Malta, Cyprus recorded the highest growth rate at 4.3% in the second quarter, followed by Luxembourg at 3.8%.

Eurostat published its unemployment data earlier this month for July with the Euro area unemployment rate at 8.2% and the EU28 unemployment rate at 6.8%.